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"Most of the food we consume can be traced back to the honeybee," Wooten said. "You can't put a value on them."

Wooten is the president of the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association, and the Jacksonville-based tender of nearly 500 hives is in Wilmington with hundreds of other apiarists to attend the organization's spring meeting at the Wilmington Convention Center, which began Thursday and runs through Sunday. The group, which boasts several thousand members and is one of the largest such clubs in the country, meets twice annually.

New Hanover County chapter president Ashley Stephenson said hosting the event in Wilmington is an honor for the local branch, which formed just five years ago. He noted that significant help in staging the event was provided by chapters from surrounding counties and the town at large.

"The community has been fantastic in giving support," Stephenson said, noting several local businesses and organizations that donated time, door prizes and other forms of material assistance.

Friday's slate of activities will largely find the center swarmed with New Hanover County school children. Over Thursday and Friday, nearly 450 kids were scheduled to attend with their teachers.

In a session on Thursday, Pine Valley Elementary School fourth graders were presented with an array of statistics as part of the educational pilot program Bee Buddies, which debuted at the conference. North Carolina has 10,000 hobbyist beekeepers who produce five million pounds of honey worth $15 million, Pender County beekeeper Laura Prevatte told the students.

In terms of the value of the crops bees pollinate, Prevatte pegged that number at $185 million, a value supported by the Department of Entomology's apiculture program at N.C. State University.

"This was really awesome. They enjoyed it and learned a lot," teacher Kim Jessup said of her class. "Bees are so important to our livelihood."

The beekeepers' meeting features a number of topical presentations and workshops from noted entomologists, beekeeping enthusiasts and others. Classes on Saturday include one by noted chef Timothy Grandinetti on cooking with honey and another with Wilmington beekeeper Laura McCabe, who will conduct a mead-making tutorial. Mead is a kind of wine derived from honey.

State beekeepers' association president Wooten noted that several lessons would focus on sharing information about the widely reported struggles beekeepers have experienced in recent years due to the phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder.

"There is a lot of concern across this country about the plight of the honeybee," Wooten said. "If we didn't have them, we wouldn't have the food supply we've got."

Wilmington beekeeper Stephenson, who keeps four hives at his Sunset Park home, said taking up the hobby is one of the easiest ways to help ensure a healthy population of potential pollinators. In addition to helping deliver a robust return on gardening efforts, gifts of honey go a long way toward winning over neighbors who may only associate the insects with painful stings.

"Plus, they're fun to play with," Stephenson said. "The dynamic of the life of a bee is absolutely fascinating."

<p>From local blueberries and strawberries to almonds, lemons and countless other produce items grown nationwide, understating the impact of bees isn't possible as far as Julian Wooten is concerned.</p><p>"Most of the food we consume can be traced back to the honeybee," Wooten said. "You can't put a value on them."</p><p>Wooten is the president of the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association, and the Jacksonville-based tender of nearly 500 hives is in Wilmington with hundreds of other apiarists to attend the organization's spring meeting at the <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic20"><b>Wilmington Convention Center</b></a>, which began Thursday and runs through Sunday. The group, which boasts several thousand members and is one of the largest such clubs in the country, meets twice annually. </p><p>New Hanover County chapter president Ashley Stephenson said hosting the event in Wilmington is an honor for the local branch, which formed just five years ago. He noted that significant help in staging the event was provided by chapters from surrounding counties and the town at large. </p><p>"The community has been fantastic in giving support," Stephenson said, noting several local businesses and organizations that donated time, door prizes and other forms of material assistance.</p><p>Friday's slate of activities will largely find the center swarmed with New Hanover County school children. Over Thursday and Friday, nearly 450 kids were scheduled to attend with their teachers. </p><p>In a session on Thursday, Pine Valley Elementary School fourth graders were presented with an array of statistics as part of the educational pilot program Bee Buddies, which debuted at the conference. North Carolina has 10,000 hobbyist beekeepers who produce five million pounds of honey worth $15 million, Pender County beekeeper Laura Prevatte told the students. </p><p>In terms of the value of the crops bees pollinate, Prevatte pegged that number at $185 million, a value supported by the Department of Entomology's apiculture program at N.C. State University.</p><p>"This was really awesome. They enjoyed it and learned a lot," teacher Kim Jessup said of her class. "Bees are so important to our livelihood."</p><p>The beekeepers' meeting features a number of topical presentations and workshops from noted entomologists, beekeeping enthusiasts and others. Classes on Saturday include one by noted chef Timothy Grandinetti on cooking with honey and another with Wilmington beekeeper Laura McCabe, who will conduct a mead-making tutorial. Mead is a kind of wine derived from honey.</p><p>State beekeepers' association president Wooten noted that several lessons would focus on sharing information about the widely reported struggles beekeepers have experienced in recent years due to the phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder. </p><p>"There is a lot of concern across this country about the plight of the honeybee," Wooten said. "If we didn't have them, we wouldn't have the food supply we've got."</p><p>Wilmington beekeeper Stephenson, who keeps four hives at his Sunset Park home, said taking up the hobby is one of the easiest ways to help ensure a healthy population of potential pollinators. In addition to helping deliver a robust return on gardening efforts, gifts of honey go a long way toward winning over neighbors who may only associate the insects with painful stings. </p><p>"Plus, they're fun to play with," Stephenson said. "The dynamic of the life of a bee is absolutely fascinating."</p><p><a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/topic9919"><b>Paul Stephen</b></a>: 343-2041</p><p>On <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/news41"><b>Twitter</b></a>: @pauljstephen</p>